Reflections
by Zoni
Summary: Five years after the battle with Ozai, Aang faces the possibility of losing the woman he loves. Will a late night conversation with her set his mind at ease? KatAang Warning: Extremely Sappy.


**Reflections  
**_by Zoni_

The light of the full moon shown brightly on the wooden house that Aang now called home. Even though it was the dead of night, the illumination from the outdoors crept into his bedroom. The paper screens that kept the room covered from the patio outside were spread apart and he had ventured out onto the balcony. The Avatar rested his elbows on the railing as he stared out at the fish pond that lay in front of the room. He was exhausted, but he still hadn't been able to sleep. Much like the currents flowing through the water below, his thoughts wouldn't stop swirling long enough to let him rest.

The world had changed all around him in the five years since he had defeated Ozai. Peace had not come swiftly, or easily, to the world. New problems and skirmishes had arisen as the nations fell into the new reality of freedom that surrounded them. With Zuko as the new Fire Lord, Aang had spent most of his time traveling between his home in the Fire Nation and Ba Sing Se. As the Avatar, it was his duty to keep the peace as everyone adjusted to the new found friendship between their countries. They had made excellent progress. Unease about the new Fire Lord was finally starting to die off as Zuko proved himself to be everything he  
had promised. Even with how far they had come, however, the world had a long way to go. The scars of the war would never be completely forgotten.

Through all of this, Aang's friends had remained by his side. It was true, though, that as they had grown older they had also grown apart. Like the approaching chill of winter, he could feel that the time they would each go their separate ways was coming. It was natural, something that he had always known would happen. After all, they weren't children any longer. They had all grown up, changed. Destiny, fate, or whatever they would call it had lead them to become strong people. When they were younger, they had all been survivors. In time, they had become people ready to take control of their own lives.

Aang's dark grey eyes drifted from the reflection of the moon in the pond towards the winding stone path that lead away from his house. Even in the darkness, he could still make out the shapes of the boxes, trunks and other containers that held the belongings that Katara and Sokka were taking with them. They had shared his new home with him ever since Ozai's defeat. Even though Sokka had repeatedly traveled the long distance between the Fire Nation and their home village in the South Pole, Katara had always chosen to remain behind, with Aang. Her presence had always been such a constant that a part of his mind had thought  
she would always be there. By his side.

Clouds blew over in the night sky, blotting out some of the light from above and casting shadows over the landscape. Aang turned his sight back towards the fish in the pond, barely visible through the water. Katara was leaving. She had made the decision to return to her village. He could feel his heart beating painfully in his chest. No matter how much he loved her, no matter how close they were, he knew that it couldn't last.

Several months before, they had received word from Sokka, who had returned from another visit to the Water Tribe, that their beloved Gran Gran had died. While they had always known, the harsh reality that Katara was the last waterbender from the South Pole had become even more obvious with the news of their grandmother's passing. Aang knew that it was only natural that she wanted to return to her village. She deserved a normal life. She would find a husband in her own tribe, or possibly the Water Tribe at the North Pole. Then, maybe, she wouldn't have to be the last waterbender in her tribe. The thought of her with someone else was like a crushing weight on his chest, but he knew that it was the way that things should be. She had captured his heart when he had only been twelve, and she had kept it ever since. In the morning, she would give it back to him for good.

The muffled sound of a door sliding shut drew Aang's thoughts back down to earth. He turned around just in time to see the young woman who had been occupying his thoughts press the door shut behind her. When she turned around, she looked surprised to find the patio screen open and Aang staring at her.

"Aang!" She was just as startled as he was. "I... I'm sorry. I thought you were asleep."

He raised an eyebrow, but moved back towards the railing. "You were trying to sneak into my room while I was asleep?"

"No, I was just..." She let out an audible sigh as she pushed away from the door and walked towards him. THe moonlight traced delicately over her curves, highlighted unter the embroidered crimson robe she wore. Her dark hair tumbled carelessly over one shoulder. She was beautiful. "I wanted to see you again, before tomorrow."

"I know what you mean. I was just kind of... startled. You could have knocked," Aang replied as he watched her out of the corner of his eyes. Katara came up beside him. She leaned forward, resting her elbows on the wooden barrier and peering down at the ghostly golden shapes gliding several feet below. Her blue eyes watched them, mesmerized. Aang, however, found himself watching her. "Katara, I wanted to say thank you. For staying with me this long."

"I told you a long time ago, Aang. We're family. Family sticks together," Katara said quietly.

Her words hurt him more because of her impending departure. It took more willpower than he would have cared to admit to push that feeling aside. Aang swallowed once to clear his throat and said, "You must be very excited to see your tribe again."

"I am," she said. Her words were sincere, but her voice didn't have much strength behind it. She turned her head to look at him through the darkness. "What about you, Aang? What will you do?"

"Oh, you know," he started, his voice flat, "The Avatar thing. Keep the peace and all of that." He hadn't meant for the words to come out as sharply as they had. He could have kicked himself when he saw the smile slide off of her face.

She looked away. "Right."

The night grew quet as they both stood there. Both of their minds had wandered into the past. Five years hadn't seemed all that long. It was hard for Katara to think that the handsome young man standing next to her was the same kid that had asked her to go penguin sledding almost six years before. She had always admired his strength and spirit, and that admiration had only grown in the years since. She reached a slender hand out to cover one of his larger ones and squeezed his fingers.

Aang turned to look at her as her hand covered his. The expression on his face made him look much older than he actually was. "I don't want you to leave, Katara."

"Why?" Katara's voice was filled with concern.

"We've been through so much, Katara. Ever since you found me in the ice." Aang's eyes were locked onto hers as he tried to tell her what had kept him from sleeping. "We've always been together. And now, you're just... leaving."

Katara regarded him for a moment as she collected her thoughts. Her eyes settled on the contrast between her golden skin and his own pale coloring before she pulled her hand back, carefully crossing her arms on the railing. After a moment, she took a deep breath and asked, "Do you remember what we talked about, before you left to go fight Ozai?"

"Which part?" He looked away.

"You said that you thought we would be together, but we weren't. I told you I just didn't know, because there was so much going on."

"I remember that." Aang's voice was surprisingly quiet. In truth, he remembered the conversation very clearly. The confusion, frustration and sadness he felt that day was chillingly similar to what he felt at the thought of losing her. Unable to stop himself, he looked over at her. If all else was lost, he still wanted to be able to remember the way she looked. Over the past few years, she had changed. Her face had matured, the soft curves fading, transforming her into a striking beauty. She had stopped wearing her hair in the girlish loops that girls from her tribe typically wore. Even with her eyebrows pressed into a frown, she was still even more breath taking than she had been on the day that he had spoken the words she had mentioned. Even though neither of them had said much on that day, what they had said had inspired many more conversations in the years after. After Ozai had been defeated, they and their friends had taken an afternoon to just try and make memories. They celebrated the fact that they had survived. Katara had kissed him, too. From that day on, she had been his just as much as he had always been hers. All the doubts about whether or not she had loved him just as much as he loved her were wiped out of his mind. Over the past few years, he had even dreamed of making her his forever He had wanted to marry her. Talking to her now, though, he could feel all of the confidence and joy that he had felt at those thoughts fading away into nothingness.

"I've been thinking a lot about that, actually." Her voice drew him back to reality. Her eyes focused on him for a fleeting moment before she looked away. "You said that we weren't together, but that wasn't really true. Even if we were kids, I was always yours. Even back then. But, you know, we've really had a rough time lately. I lost Gran Gran, and you've been having to travel between here and the city. And ever since I told you I was leaving.. sometimes, I feel like neither of us is really happy with everything that's been going on. That's why-"

"Katara, you really don't have to-" Aang didn't want to hear the explanations she had for leaving. It was painful enough without having more to think about.

"- I can't go back to live with my tribe again." Katara finished.

Aang gaped at her. Whatever he thought she was going to say, that wasn't it. "What?"

"I want to go and visit my family and friends," Katara said, her cheeks stained with a faint blush. "But, if you would be okay with it, when I'm done... I want to come back here and stay with you."

Before he even had a chance to react, Aang swept her up into his arms and pulled her close. His breath was warm against her neck in the night air. Katara wrapped her arms around him as she waited for him to relax. The warmth of his arms made her want to melt against him. She resisted, and took a step backwards. Trying to read his expression, she wasn't sure what she saw in his eyes. She took a breath and decided to take a chance. Stepping up onto her toes, she leaned forward and pressed her lips to his. Aang pressed back as he tilted his head to deepen the kiss. Reluctantly, Katara pulled away. Tonight, she didn't want to get  
caught up in everything he made her feel when she gave into his touch. The kiss had been short and sweet, and it had conveyed all the emotion she hadn't been able to put into words.

When they parted, Katara could feel her heartbeat struggling to return to normal. Not wanting to move away from him, she reached a hand up and cupped the side of Aang's face. "Are you okay?"

The young Avatar sighed, pressing his face into the palm of the hand resting on his cheek. Was he okay? The question didn't even seem to have an answer. He had spent the past few days dreading the time when Katara would leave, and she had just told him that she would still be coming back to him. It felt like he'd been trying to bend an entire mountain out of the way, and the weight had suddenly been lifted. Tentatively, he reached up and covered her hand with his own, quietly delighting in the soft feel of her fingers against his face. "I didn't want you to leave."

Katara smiled. "You could have asked me to stay."

"No, I couldn't." Slowly, Aang dropped his hand from hers and turned back towards the railing. He looked down at the patterns the fish were tracing in the surface of the water as they swam in endless circles. He raised a hand and caused a bubble of water to raise off of the surface. The ball swirled in spirals over the water before he let it fall back to the surface. The fish swam away from the disturbance. "I could never ask you to choose me over your tribe, Katara. It would be selfish for me to even think that."

"It's okay to be selfish sometimes, Aang." Katara followed him the short distance to the railing. Her eyes watched the simple patterns he had made on the water. After a moment, she leaned up against him, just happy to enjoy his warmth and companionship. Almost without thinking, he lifted his arm and wrapped it around her waist as he pulled her closer.

Quietly, he asked, "Why did you come to my room tonight?"

"I wanted to be selfish," Katara replied.

Aang's voice was skeptical, but curious. "You? Selfish?"

"Yes."

"How?"

Katara turned her face to look up at his face so she could better judge his expression. "I wanted to ask... if you would come with me, to my home village."

Even through the darkness, she could see the look on his face soften. At that moment, it seemed like all the stress and worry that bothered them earlier in the evening had just been a dream. The night was beautiful, and the only sounds they could hear were the sounds of their own breathing. It seemed like an eternity had passed before Aang finally responded. "I will, on one condition."

"And what is that?"

"That I get to introduce you as my wife."

**~)(*)(~  
Author's Note:** I'll admit, I usually don't write A:TLA fanfiction. I also usually don't write romance! However, after watching the movie twice (I'm the only fan who enjoyed it, apparently), and re-watching the entire series... I really wanted to write a little bit of fluff. I hope you enjoy it. Maybe I'll write another story following this - about when they get to Katara's village. What do you think?


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